Chuck Hagel for Secretary of Defense

If you're following the news you have likely heard that former Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel is likely to be President Obama's nominee to be the next Secretary of Defense.  The old draft Hagel network is getting back together to support this nomination.  Please visit and like our new Facebook page to that end.

Breakfast with Biden

Today Chuck Hagel is having breakfast with Vice President Biden. Politico reports:

"Vice President Biden will have breakfast on Tuesday with former Sen. Chuck Hagel, the White House says.

Hagel, a co-chairman of the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, was scheduled to meet with Biden at the Naval Observatory at 8 a.m. The White House didn’t say what they would talk about."

Chuck Hagel on Public Service

U.S. News and World Report has a new issue out and it focuses on Public Service. Chuck Hagel was invited to contribute on his experience and views on the subject. It is a short essay that is well worth the read.

"Public service is the essence of a free people, an open society, and a vital democracy. It is the centerpiece of a generous and caring culture. And there are so many wonderful ways to engage oneself in the employment of humanity, including elective office. Public service defines us, and it takes many forms. It is more than anything else the privilege of helping make a better world for all mankind. What is more important in life, more fulfilling, and more compelling?"

Thank you to those that serve our communities, in so many different capacities.

Chuck Hagel pays tribute to Senator Lugar

"Former Senator Chuck Hagel delivers remarks about Senator Richard Lugar during the 2010 CRDF George Brown Award for International Scientific Cooperation event, at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, September 16, 2010."

Interview with Senator Hagel - The Washington Diplomat

Chuck Hagel has given an interview to the Washington Diplomat discussing politics (Iraq, Afghanistan, the Republican Party, and more) and his post-Senate work.

How right they were

I ran across an old article (The Washington Times, January 7, 1997) and wanted to share an astute prediction.

Chuck Hagel raised eyebrows in Washington by winning the Republican primary in Nebraska, where he was given little hope. He impressed more skeptics by overcoming odds and winning the general election over Democrat Ben Nelson to take the seat left by retiring Democratic Sen. Jim Exon.

"If he runs his office half as well as he did his campaign, he's going to be a player to watch," Mr. Marr said.

Mr. Hagel has proven himself as one to watch, and we continue to expect to see great things.

Secretary of Defense Gates to step down in 2011

Foreign Policy reports that Secretary of Defense Robert Gates plans to leave the administration in 2011, indeed he has stayed quite a bit longer than he originally planned. Secretary Gates told FP, "I just think this is not the kind of job you want to fill in the spring of a presidential election. So I think sometime in 2011 sounds pretty good." With this news, the speculation as to who would replace him picks up.

Foreign Policy goes through the short list for the next Secretary of Defense, which includes Chuck Hagel:

Always the bridesmaid: Chuck Hagel

Former Nebraska senator

The Obama administration has been trying to give Hagel a prime posting for a while. He's reported to have turned down several sweet offers, including ambassador to China and director of national intelligence. He does serve as a co-chair of Obama's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. In Hagel's favor, he's a Republican who won't bend to the GOP talking points of the moment and he's high-profile enough to fill the chair. The fear is that his independence and his penchant for veering off message in a Biden-esque way make him too risky to entrust with such a prominent perch. Moreover, if Obama chooses another Republican to lead DOD, many will begin to question whether the Democratic national- security bench is too thin or if Obama is wary of putting someone in his own party in charge of the wars.

Leslie Gelb of the Wall Street Journal agues that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton should be shifted over to replace Bob Gates at Defense and Chuck Hagel should take her place as Secretary of State. "Her position at State could be readily filled by Chuck Hagel. The former Republican senator from Nebraska is generally aligned on foreign policy with Mr. Obama, perhaps more so than Mrs. Clinton herself. His confirmation would be easy."

Atlantic Council President Chuck Hagel on START

Chuck Hagel speaks on the progress and future of the new START agreement between the U.S. and Russia:

Joe Sestak picks the Senator he most admires: Chuck Hagel

OWH: "Hagel speaks up for vets"

The Omaha-World Herald has a piece out, "Hagel speaks up for vets."

Hagel praised the At Ease program as a potential national model, saying local public-private partnerships could be the quickest and most compassionate way to get veterans the help they need.

The government is spending billions of dollars annually trying to help veterans, he said, but “our circuits are overloaded” after nine years of war and a crippling recession.

Nonprofits, religious groups and businesses must step up, he said, ignoring old assumptions that only veterans wearing a sling or a bandage are in need of serious help.

“We can't let (returning veterans) just drift,” Hagel said. “We don't say, ‘Well, it looks like you don't have a problem. You look fine.'”

Former Senator Hagel has continued to be a leading voice on veterans issues, particularly those facing the soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Hagel Named to Defense Policy Board

The Lincoln Journal Star reports that former Senator Chuck Hagel has been named to the Defense Policy Board by Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.

"A Republican Looks at His Party"

There is an interview with Hagel titled "A Republican Looks at His Party" that is worth a read. It gives Chuck Hagel's take on a recent Republican fundraiser and the state of the Republican party.

In the wake of the big Republican fund-raising dinner keynoted by Newt Gingrich with Sarah Palin as an off-again, on-again attendee and distraction, the shambles in which the party finds itself is painfully apparent.

Rather than trotting out a prominent figure who might bring a fresh and forward-looking message to the assembled faithful, the dinner spotlighted a veteran of Democratic vilification and a defeated vice-presidential nominee diminished by her transparent shortcomings in national and foreign policy international matters.

KPTM: "Former Senator Chuck Hagel Staying Busy with Role as Professor"

KTPM 42 has a nice story and video with Chuck Hagel catching up with him on life after the U.S. Senate.

US-Saudi Relations

Chuck Hagel was a panelist at a recent event sponsored by the New America Foundation. The panel was titled "A Forward Projection of What the Saudi-US Relationship Should Look Like and Needs to Achieve." For more details, see The Washington Note.

Q&A with Chuck Hagel

The National Journal has a good Q&A with Chuck Hagel: "Knitting Together an Unraveling World."

What's next for Chuck Hagel

In the last week Chuck Hagel's post-Senate plans have begun to be announced. First, Chuck Hagel will be joining the faculty at Georgetown University (see the story at the Washington Post). Senator Hagel will also become the new Chairman of the Atlantic Council (see their announcement). Their previous chairman, retired General Jim Jones, stepped down to be President Obama's National Security Advisor. In addition to his foreign policy portfolio, Senator Hagel will also be active in the financial sector, taking on two positions. One is as a member of the Board of Advisers for Corsair Capital, a private equity firm (see the press release). The other is as a senior adviser with McCarthy Capital Corp. (see the story at the Lincoln Journal Star).

Photo - Senator Hagel in Iraq

Senator Obama, General David Petraeus, and Senator Hagel in Iraq

Photo from ABCnews

Press Release - Hagel to join Obama on trip to Iraq and Afghanistan

Yesterday Senator Hagel's office released this statement:

Hagel and Reed Announce Plans to Join Obama for Bipartisan CODEL to Iraq and Afghanistan Later This Summer

July 13th, 2008 - WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Chuck Hagel (R-NE) today announced plans to join U.S. Senator Barack Obama in traveling to Iraq and Afghanistan later this summer to get a firsthand look at the security and political situation in these two important countries for American national security. The bipartisan Congressional Delegation (CODEL) plans to meet with top U.S. military commanders and civilians, and senior Iraqi and Afghan leaders. They will also thank our troops, civilians, and coalition partners for their heroic work in extremely difficult circumstances.

In Iraq, the senators will examine whether the tactical buildup of U.S. troops has resulted in the progress necessary to resolve Iraq’s political differences, provide basic services to the Iraqi people, and create long-term stability. In Afghanistan, the senators will assess the U.S.-led efforts to combat the Taliban and expand security in light of the recent rise in violence, while also assessing the political and economic situation.

Senator Reed is a senior member of the Armed Services Committee and will be arranging the logistics for this trip. Senators Obama and Hagel serve on the Foreign Relations Committee.

“I look forward to joining Senators Obama and Reed on this important trip,” said Senator Hagel. “U.S. policies in Iraq and Afghanistan are at the center of America’s national security. These critical issues must be addressed in a bipartisan manner that builds consensus for a bipartisan American foreign policy.”

“This CODEL is a good opportunity to look, listen, and assess recent developments in the region. I am pleased to join Senators Obama and Hagel on this bipartisan fact finding mission. Our troops are performing heroically in Afghanistan and Iraq and doing everything they can to stem the violence. They deserve a policy that is worthy of their sacrifice,” said Senator Reed. “Economic rebuilding and political stability are key components of our operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. We will carefully examine our non-military efforts to bring stability to these places.”

Senator Hagel on Bloomberg TV

Senator Hagel's speech at the Brookings Institution

Today Senator Hagel delivered a speech to The Brookings Institution, an event described as

"a discussion of U.S. foreign policy in the context of the 2008 presidential campaign. Senator Hagel examined the inventory of global challenges that the next president will inherit and the responsibilities of the presidential candidates to address these challenges."

The speech was titled "Memo to the Candidates." You can read the full text here as a pdf.